Freedom of Speech?

a british muslim rapper intends to release an album that castigates the west, honors Osama by likening him to Che Guevara. it will interesting to wait and see what will be the response from the West. will they allow it as freedom of speech since if they dont, they will compromising on their zealous principle.

i really hope more muslim artists will come forward with similar efforts as Aki Nawaz only to prove a point to the west- In this world every person be it a Muslim or non-Muslim, has a personal boundary of acceptance and tolerance beyond which his/her sensitivities will be damaged. therefore one must express something about someone else within the boundary of the other person. should the west insist selfishly that they are entitled to unilaterally express themselves regardless of whether it will injure the sensitivities of the other, then it must be equally be prepared to take what it dishes out. one man's meat is another man's poison. there can freedom of speech. but why does one need freedom to injure another?


G-had and suicide bombers: the rapper who likens Bin Laden to Che Guevara ·
Record label chiefs' threat to quit over violent lyrics·



This is about freedom of expression, says musician Mark Brown, arts correspondent and Luc TorresWednesday June 28, 2006The Guardian Aki Nawaz says he is is prepared to face the consequences of his album’s release. 'I'll take all the blame,' he says. 'If they're going to lock anyone up they'll lock me up'. Photograph: Martin Godwin
Two record company executives are threatening to resign from a label over an album by a radical Muslim musician which has tracks about the immorality of the west, suicide bombers and Osama bin Laden.

Aki Nawaz is determined to release what is, by anyone's standards, a phenomenally angry album. He says he fully expects a knock on the door from MI5. As the main component of the band Fun-da-Mental, Nawaz has been producing politically challenging music since 1991 but accepts he is pushing those boundaries further.

The album, All is War (The Benefits of G-had), contains one track which uses the words of Bin Laden issuing "a statement of reason and explanation of impending conflict" and equates him with Che Guevara. Another forensically recreates a suicide bomber at work. The opening song is a rejection of what Nawaz sees as the hypocrisy and immorality of the west. One supposedly dream-like track predicts the demise of America at the hands of Islam.
Nawaz, a former drummer in the Southern Death Cult, said yesterday: "I have a right to push the boundaries as much as anyone else has, whether it's Ken Loach or Harold Pinter or George Galloway or Neil Young or the Sex Pistols."

He recognises some people will say his album should not be released, that it might incite people. "I've already told all the lyricists don't worry if we get into trouble, I'll take all the blame. If they're going to lock anyone up they'll lock me up. I'm not scared, I've got a lot of anger and frustration at where we have arrived at. I'll take the heat. And I've told my kids, I've told my wife that if anything goes wrong with me I want you outside Paddington Green and I want you staying there day and night."

The impending release of the album has already caused consternation. Nawaz says two silent directors of his label, Nation Records - Martin Mills and Andrew Heath of Beggars Banquet Records - have threatened to resign if he releases the album, which he intends to. Neither Mr Mills nor Mr Heath were prepared to comment yesterday.

Nawaz said he had respect for both men but added: "I'm kind of disappointed because it makes me think if Never Mind the Bollocks had landed on their tables they would have dismissed it. "They're in fear for themselves and they're in fear for me which is a telling tale of where we are at in the present scheme of things when it comes to freedom of expression."

Nawaz produced the album in London, Pakistan and South Africa and it also contains songs which address deaths in Afghanistan and Srebrenica.
He said rather than ask about the effect his album might have on impressionable people, the question should be asked of the government. "You've already got people at the top who are inspiring them to do wrong. It's like a mafia who say for us to do anything is legitimate but any resistance towards us is illegitimate. So you have legalised terrorism and illegal terrorism."
Nawaz, who grew up in Bradford, believes he is being honest. This "honesty" manifests itself in tracks such as the rap song I Reject, an angry polemical blast with lines such as "Reject your blood I reject your creed/Reject your queen and her stolen crown/Reject your media falsified news/Reject your patronising liberal views." It also takes a swipe at moderate Muslim voices who accept invitations to Downing Street.

Nawaz said: "A lot of young people will listen to I Reject and say that's where I'm at. Anyone worried by what I'm saying should get involved in the debate. You are allowed to dissent. It's a right. It's not exclusive to indigenous people."
Nawaz describes the songs Che Bin Parts 1 and 2 as a discussion on resistance and terrorism. He uses the words of Bin Laden and Che Guevara to suggest that they have more in common than differences. Nawaz said he challenged anyone to disagree with the statement by Bin Laden that he uses.

Cookbook DIY has lyrics about how a suicide bomber makes his bomb. It also has a verse about how a White House scientist makes his bomb - equating the two.
Nawaz denies that he is condoning suicide bombers. "Everything to me is tragic. I don't understand what the guys are doing. But I can feel what they're doing."
It is not difficult to predict the reaction from some sectors. Nawaz says he is ready for it. "I've got a Post-It note on my front door saying don't knock the door in, ring me, here's my number."

Economics: 10 indicators to evaluate basic standards of life of a Muslim community

10 indicators to evaluate basic standards of life of a Muslim community

being an economist, my job is to evaluate with measures and indicators. i often pondered a lot as to what will be an optimal(not necessarily the best) list of 10 indicators to evaluate the basic standards of life of any Muslim community in any country across the globe

well till now i am still debating within myself... but i guess i will list a preliminary list and work on it :)

1) poverty rate (definition of poverty: those who do not have the means to consume 3 meals per day)

2) access to pure drinking water

3) access to basic/emergecy medical services

4) rate of homelessness

5) literacy rate including quranic literacy

6) responsiveness for the growth in madrasahs

7) divorce rate

8) unemployment rate

9) crime rate

10) responsiveness for the growth in mosques and their services.

2nd International Conference on Islamic Spirituality

2nd International Conference on Islamic Spirituality

A good departure from the typical conferences held here in Singapore which tirelessly dwell upon contemporary discussions.

For the typical contemporary topics, the Muslim audience get to hear what they like to hear and it tends to be largely popular. But contemporary topics tend to be chiefly subjective which can be discussed till eternity without seeing an end or change. Likewise you cant see quite an observable impact or difference on the audience as they bring back little that which can truely enrich their lives.

In traditional topics like above, the audience can get to hear what is useful, resourceful, beneficial and helpful for them to hear where they can bring back something strong and useful which they can individually and privately work on.

A must go................... for info click ................ here

Political: Apartheid Wall

Wall by Al - Kasaba Theatre

i attended the theater performance by Ramallah based Al-Kasaba Theatre called Wall which was more of a traditional story telling session with a folk style. i was surprised to see a large turnout with several public faces. some singaporeans truely do have an interest to see behind the wall, which is created by media and politicians, on the realities of Palestinians.

the play though political in genre was void of political rhetoric. instead in simple words, actions, songs and dance articulated how the Israeli Wall dividing the Palestinian territories have intensified the daily struggles of Palestinians - making it more difficult for Palestinians to laugh, cry, play, weep, sleep, mourn, work, study, trade, dream etc. the emotional stress the wall has brought about on the Palestinians is clearly illustrated in the play.

as the apartheid wall continues to discriminate, disrupt and dislocate Palestinians, i truely wonder what peace do the Israelis envision in their lands. i wonder if the Europeans and North Americans had to watch this play, will they continue to lend their support to occupation, oppression and racism compromising on the very basic human rights ideals they superficially champion. in the history of mankind, many walls had been built and all came down.

Political: US 'biggest global peace threat'

The biggest irony of Bush and Blair's war in iraq to bring freedom to iraqi people and safety to the world has been to bring about the very opposite results.

US 'biggest global peace threat'

People in European and Muslim countries see US policy in Iraq as a bigger threat to world peace than Iran's nuclear programme, a survey has shown. The survey by the Pew Research Group also found support for US President George W Bush and his "war on terror" had dropped dramatically worldwide.

Goodwill created by US aid for nations hit by the 2004 tsunami had also faded since last year, the survey found.

The survey questioned 17,000 people in 15 countries, including the US.
The latest in a series of annual polls by the Pew Global Attitudes Project interviewed respondents between 31 March and 14 May 2006.
Its release coincides with a surprise visit by President George W Bush to Baghdad in an effort to shore up support for US policy in the region.

'Fading goodwill'
The latest survey shows the worldwide reputation of the US continues to suffer over its prosecution of the "war on terror".
Sharp declines in the public perception of the US were particularly apparent in India, Spain and Turkey.
Goodwill towards the US had fallen from 71% to 56% in India, from 41% to 23% in Spain and from 23% to 12% in Turkey.

A majority of people in 10 of the 14 countries outside the US surveyed said the war in Iraq had made the world a more dangerous place.
Some 60% of people in the UK, which is the US biggest ally, felt the Iraq war had made the world less secure, while some 30% said it had made the world safer.

According to the survey:
Worldwide support for the "war on terror" has remained the same or declined European confidence in Mr Bush has sunk even lower than it was last year A majority of people in most countries feel the US will not achieve its goals in the "war on terror" The survey also found little remaining evidence of the goodwill the US had earned over its aid for victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

In Indonesia, a major recipient of US tsunami aid, favourable opinions of the US had fallen from 38% in 2005 to 30% this year.
"Last year we saw some good news in countries like Russia and India," Andrew Kohut, director of the Pew Research Centre, told the Associated Press news agency.
"That good news being wiped away is a measure of how difficult a problem this is for the United States."

Muslim differences
According to the survey, people in the US and Europe have grown increasingly concerned in the last year over Iran's nuclear programme.
The US has accused Iran of seeking to build a nuclear bomb - but Iran says its nuclear programme has a purely civilian objective.
Almost half of the Americans surveyed, 46%, viewed the current government in Iran as a "great danger" to stability in the Middle East and to world peace - a figure that has risen from 26% in 2003.

In Germany, Spain, France and the UK, the percentage of people who regard Iran as a great danger is roughly three times greater than it was three years ago.
However, the poll showed public opinion in predominantly Muslim countries was far less troubled by Tehran's nuclear programme.

Muslim people also appeared less concerned than Europeans and Americans by the victory of the Hamas militant group in Palestinian elections earlier this year.
The survey found concern over bird flu was largely confined to Asia, while two-thirds of people surveyed in each country said they were worried by global warming.
Concern over the greenhouse effect was highest in India and Japan and lowest in the US and China.

The survey interviewed people in China, Egypt, France, Germany, Great Britain, India, Indonesia, Japan, Jordan, Nigeria, Pakistan, Russia, Spain, Turkey and the US.
Its margin of error was two to six percentage points.
Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/5077984.stm
Published: 2006/06/14 05:44:48 GMT